LA to NY Spring trip!

Hi guys,

A couple friends and I are planning to do a road trip from Los Angeles, CA to NY,NY in March. We just drafted this idea up and have no idea where to start. We want to take.. maybe 4~5 days on the road, driving maybe around 10~15 hours a day? I have a few questions!
1) Is it better to take the southern route through texas and then up through near the atlantic, northern route through chicago, or the direct route through kansas? We want to see at least a few monuments or sight see along the way!
2) Is 4~5 days a realistic time frame? We're college students so we have the energy for a little extra driving but time-wise.. will we be able to at least take a few pictures along the way?
3) are there any posted experiences/routes that we could use as a guide perhaps?
Thanks for the help! This forum looks awesome.

One Way?

Welcome to the RTA Forum!

I'm I correct to assume that this is a one way trip? 4-5 days is enough time to make a quick shot across the country. 4 Days would really only give you enough time to take some pictures of what you are seeing on the road, 5 days would still require you to be on the road a good 9 hours a day, but you would be able to squeeze in a couple of quick stops and short detours.

If you are thinking about this as a round trip during this timeframe, then forget about the idea right now, because its simply not within the reach of human limitations.

In terms of a route, the best one is the one that takes you through the part of the country you want to visit. Personally, I like I-70 through Colorado, but its all a matter of personal taste. In March, you'll still want to keep your eye on the weather, as you can still see some winter conditions on any route you take.

For more info, look around the RTA website, try searching the forum with terms like "cross country," and you'll find plenty of other experiences and information.

car rental?

yeah we're thinking one way and then flying back because we only have a week for the trip. We're thinking about going through Iowa and Chicago to get there.

Are there any tips for car rentals? We want to get a large SUV or miniman and Hertz says $1150 for a week on a minivan and $900 for a small SUV (trailblazer, 4runner, etc). Does anybody know where we could rent for cheaper?

LA to NY

Hello,
I'm planning an approx 5 day trip to NY from LA. I've kinda laid out a plan going 15N to 70E then 76E to 80E to Toronto then 90E, 81S to NY.
We're planning on stopping once or twice between LA and Iowa City (where my cousin lives) and then maybe sleep in Toronto, Canada and then visit Niagara Falls on our way to NY NY. So we'd be stopping a couple times before we get to iowa city.. then once in iowa.. once in toronto.. then to ny!

Does anybody have experiences with these roads... advice... places to see along the way? We live close to vegas so we're not going to stop there.. but maybe Hoover Dam? What's in Utah and colorado?

The reality of time

I will strongly suggest you don't try to make the trip to Iowa city with less than 2 overnight stops. Even 3 day trip will require you to be on the road for close to 11 hours a day to cover this distance, and that's before you stop for any pictures. And there are many great things to take pictures of along I-70. The trip through Utah and Colorado is one of my favorite scenic drives in the country.

The trip to Toronto will be a pretty monster day, requiring a solid 13 hours on the road. Its do-able, but it does add quite a few of extra miles to the direct trip to NYC. Toronto is still a solid 9 hour day from New York, before any stopping at the Falls or anywhere else.

Considering you only have 5 days, you might want to rethink Toronto. You can cover the distance, but since you'll be getting there very late in the day, and you'll have to leave the next morning, you really won't have any time to see anything. If you are still planning on renting a car, you also might not be allowed to take the car into Canada.

Rentals

You're looking at among the most expensive vehicles to rent -- but you may find better rates with some other companies.

That said, I suspect your age is working against you here as most companies will charge a premium for anyone under 25 -- if they will rent to you at all.

Aside from that issue, try using a travel search engine that looks at different companies all at once -- I use Southwest Airline's site usually but there are many (like Travelocity, or Expedia, etc). The cheapest rates will vary from day to day, week to week. Shop around.

Among the cheapest (usually) while still offering a quality product are Alamo and Dollar, perhaps Budget or Enterprise. Fox also comes in low quite often but I have no experience with them. (With some companies, hidden charges can make the quoted rates unreflective of the eventual total, so be careful about dealing with companies you don't know or that no one else has ever heard of.) Bob